The present disclosure relates generally to methods and apparatus for determining the relative positions of connectors, and more particularly relates to methods and apparatus for identifying the relative position and orientation of an external connector relative to an integrated connector, such as on a computing system.
Electronic devices, such as laptop computers, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable music players, as just some examples, often include one or more connectors in the form of ports or sockets to receive a mating connector through which to communicate with or through an external device. Such connectors on the electronic devices include power interface connectors, as well as connectors for various I/O ports, including, for example, Ethernet jacks (such as an RJ-45 connector), telephone jacks (such as an RJ-11 connector), universal serial bus (USB) ports, various configurations of IEEE 1394 interfaces, video inputs and outputs, display interfaces, audio inputs and outputs, and other interfaces. The external devices, whether cables, dongle or discrete devices, will include mating connectors configured to mate with the connectors on the electronic device. Examples of discrete devices including such connectors include USB memory drives (known as “thumb drives”), cameras with USB or IEEE 1394-compliant connectors, or any of many other devices that may attach directly to such an electronic device. For clarity in the disclosure herein, unless otherwise indicated, the connector on the electronic device in the discussed examples will be referred to as a “port,” while the connector on the external device will be termed a “connector.” Those skilled in the art will understand that both the “port” and the “connector” are each physical connectors configured to cooperatively engage one another to establish some degree of a mechanical connection and either an electrical or optical connection.
Sometimes, computers and other electronic devices may have ports that can be difficult to identify, whether it is because the particular port is located in a hard-to-see place (such as on the back or the side of a machine) or because particular port types can be difficult to distinguish from one another by reason of their physical similarity (such as audio input and audio output ports; or USB ports and IEEE 1394 400 ports. Further, in some instances, the user may have difficulty seeing the particular connectors because of the location of the port or because the particular user may have vision problems that make such ports difficult to see and identify.
Additionally, it can sometimes be difficult to distinguish a correct orientation of a connector for properly inserting the connector into a host port. Often, a user may try a first orientation and, if the connector doesn't fit, try another orientation. However, such trial and error techniques can be frustrating to a user and may result in damage, for example, to the connector, the port, or both. Therefore, there is a need for an improved system to facilitate connection of external devices to a host device.